Climate Proxies

Part of Hall of Planet Earth.

Climate proxies section of the Hall of Planet Earth AMNH/D. Finnin

Studying Past Climate

How do we know how climate changed in the distant past? One way is by taking samples of sediment from the bottom of lakes and oceans, where dust, pollen and shells accumulate in fine layers over millions of years. Sediment cores, along with rocks, organisms and even large landforms can contain clues to the way climate has shaped Earth.

Slide titled "Studying Past Climate" about studying past climate by taking sediment samples from bottom of lakes and oceans.
Slide titled "3.6 Million Years of Climate" noting that sediment cores from lakes and oceans are some of our oldest available climate records.
Slide titled "Frozen North America" with image of glacier edge, text blurb and map of North America showing location of ice sheets 20,000 years ago.
Slide titled "Ice Age in Central Park" with images of a boulder and Umpire Rock to illustrate effects of retreating glaciers on famous NY landscapes.
Slide titled "Trees" with text over image of tree round about trees providing detailed records of local climate.

In This Section

Exhibit Coral Core This section of a coral colony recorded conditions in the eastern Pacific Ocean during at least 10 El Niño events.   Deep-sea Sediment Core Model The segment of sediment core modeled here shows 3,000 years of changing climate. Exhibit Lake Sediment Core Model This model represents part of a 3.6million year sediment record from far northeastern Siberia, Russia.   Grooved boulder Rocks and pebbles embedded in the underside of flowing glaciers created the grooves, called glacial striations, on the surface of... Exhibit Tree Cross Section This cross-section of a chestnut oak (Quercus montana) from eastern Kentucky is a 283-year chronicle of local climate. Exhibit Tree Core This core represents a continuous record of climate in the Hudson River Valley.